Astros brass shows confidence in core for next season

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Even as the Astros look to rebuild in 2013, the players who took the field for their closing series in Chicago will represent the core of Houston’s inaugural American League team, general manager Jeff Luhnow said Thursday.

Luhnow held day-long meetings with the team’s front office staff, evaluating the team’s 40-man roster, while a few players and interim manager Tony DeFrancesco cleared belongings out of the Minute Maid Park clubhouse to prepare for the offseason.

Luhnow’s list of core players included what sounds like most of a potential 2013 starting lineup: Brett Wallace, Jose Altuve, Jed Lowrie and Matt Dominguez in the infield, Jason Castro catching, Fernando Martinez and Justin Maxwell in the outfield, and a pitching staff anchored by Bud Norris, Lucas Harrell, Jordan Lyles, Wesley Wright and Wilton Lopez.

Outfield boost sought
Those were the names, along with J.D. Martinez, that Luhnow cited as core members of the 2013 club, which still leaves plenty of room for improvement through trades, free agency or 2012 minor leaguers coming to the forefront.

“We need run production from our outfield spots,” Luhnow said. “We like our outfielders, but we didn’t have that one or two consistent guys that can drive in 80, 90 runs. We have guys who can get on base at the top of the order. We have guys who can chip in at the bottom of the order. We need guys that can produce runs.

“Whether J.D. Martinez becomes that guy consistently, whether there are other guys, we don’t know yet. That would be the No. 1 need along with pitching, another guy who can go out there and give you 200 innings and stabilize the rotation.”

Other priorities, he said, would be competitive options for the bullpen and, to prepare for the AL, a designated hitter.

“This year was about laying the foundation for the future, getting a handle on how we’re going to take this organization to the point of consistent competitiveness, and I think we’ve done that,” Luhnow said. “The future’s bright.”

Luhnow said at least 50 players at various levels will participate in winter ball, including Altuve and Marwin Gonzalez, who cleaned out their lockers en route to the airport and a trip to their native Venezuela.
Gonzalez, who is recovering from an injury to his left ankle suffered Aug. 30, said he probably won’t be ready to play until November.

Altuve upbeat
Altuve, the Astros’ lone All-Star and inspiration for the website HowManyAltuves.com, which treats his 5-5 frame as a standard unit of measurement (it is, for example, 2.2 million Altuves by air from Houston to Caracas), left with an upbeat outlook.

“I feel really good right now,” he said. “We did the best we could as a team, and we have a lot of young players who got to know each other. Next year will be easier. We will be a real team. We’re going to win some games.”

Also packing up was DeFrancesco, who hopes to return to the Astros as a member of new manager Bo Porter’s staff.

“It will be up to (owner) Jim (Crane) and Bo to decide,” he said. “Jeff is on the right track here. We’re going to change this thing around.”